Sysco Co. (NYSE:SYY) Stock Position Raised by Stonegate Investment Group LLC

Stonegate Investment Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Sysco Co. (NYSE:SYY) by 0.8% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 31,981 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 261 shares during the period. Stonegate Investment Group LLC’s holdings in Sysco were worth $2,596,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Wealthfront Advisers LLC raised its stake in shares of Sysco by 263.4% during the 3rd quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC now owns 34,007 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,246,000 after purchasing an additional 24,650 shares in the last quarter. Professional Advisory Services Inc. bought a new position in Sysco in the 4th quarter worth $20,057,000. Harbour Trust & Investment Management Co acquired a new position in Sysco during the 4th quarter worth $4,623,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in Sysco by 40.1% during the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 82,239 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,014,000 after acquiring an additional 23,558 shares during the period. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its stake in shares of Sysco by 16.2% in the fourth quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 298,982 shares of the company’s stock worth $21,865,000 after purchasing an additional 41,618 shares during the period. 83.41% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Sysco Trading Down 3.8 %

Shares of NYSE SYY traded down $2.90 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $74.32. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 7,972,734 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,948,538. Sysco Co. has a one year low of $62.24 and a one year high of $82.89. The stock has a market cap of $37.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.00, a current ratio of 1.37 and a quick ratio of 0.80. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $79.02 and its 200-day simple moving average is $75.11.

Sysco (NYSE:SYY) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 30th. The company reported $0.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.88 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $19.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $19.32 billion. Sysco had a net margin of 2.69% and a return on equity of 105.22%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.80 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Sysco Co. will post 4.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sysco Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 5th will be issued a $0.51 dividend. This is an increase from Sysco’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.74%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 5th. Sysco’s dividend payout ratio is 48.90%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CAO Neil Russell sold 1,722 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total transaction of $137,760.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 24,082 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,926,560. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.58% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have issued reports on SYY. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Sysco from $84.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 19th. Stephens lifted their price objective on Sysco from $80.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. StockNews.com lowered Sysco from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 1st. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on shares of Sysco from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Sysco from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Sysco presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $85.38.

About Sysco

Sysco Corporation, through its subsidiaries, engages in the marketing and distribution of various food and related products to the foodservice or food-away-from-home industry in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, France, and internationally. It operates through U.S. Foodservice Operations, International Foodservice Operations, SYGMA, and Other segments.